Vegan carrot cake by chef Yiannis Lucacos

FOR THE VEGAN CARROT CAKE  

1. In a bowl add the sugar, coconut oil, vanilla, almond drink and whisk, until all ingredients are finely homogenized.
2. In a bowl, add the flour, salt, baking powder, soda, ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg and mix well with a spoon.
3. Put the mixture of solid ingredients into the mixture of the liquid ingredients in 3 doses and mix with a wire, until they are homogenized.  Add walnuts, mix and add the carrot in small doses, until completely combined with the mixture.
4. Grease a non-stick cake pan with oil and pour the mixture.
5. Bake in a preheat oven at 175°C, in the fan, until it is baked on the inside, for approximately 60 to 70 minutes. (The cake is ready, once you insert a small knife into its centre and it comes away clean with little moisture, when pulled out.)
6. Remove the cake from the oven and let it cool at room temperature.
7. Garnish with the peanuts frosting, the crushed pistachios, cut in slices and serve.

FOR THE PEANUTS FROSTING

1. In a mixer’s bowl, add all the ingredients and whisk at a high speed, until the mixture gets smooth and thick. Transfer it to a pastry bag and store in the fridge, until it gets thick.

TIPS:

*you can  also divide the cake mix in a muffin pan, reducing the cooking time in half and checking the centre of the cakes every 10 minutes.

*for more intense taste, you can roast the cashews in the oven in 160°C for 15 to 20 minutes and then move to the preparation of the frosting.

*for the frosting, you can use any other nuts you like.

*If the cake got too dark in the first 40 minutes, cover it with aluminium foil and resume baking, until it is ready.